Objectives: Quantify the strain development of implant supported cantilever bridges compared to implant supported fixed bridge. Materials and methods: Two endosseous screw type implants were used to support two fixed partial denture designs (group I: implant supported conventional fixed partial denture) and (group II: implant supported cantilever fixed partial denture) (ICFPD) replacing two central incisors and right lateral incisor in anatomically correct maxillary model. Both FPD designs were subjected to a load 200N to compare microstrains released on bone supporting dental implants.
Results: In implant supported conventional FPD, the microstrains of sites mesial to central incisor and mesial to lateral incisor were 274 and 306 µƐ respectively. These results were significantly higher than sites away from pontic distal to central incisor and lateral incisor 68 and 91 µƐ respectively, P≤0.001. Implant supported cantilever FPD demonstrated similar results. The microstrain value of site near the pontic (distal to right central incisor) was 408 µƐ that was significantly higher than the microstrains values of other sites away from pontic, P≤0.001. It was found that, the microstrains value near pontic in ICFPD 408 was higher than those of sites near pontic of conventional FPD but with no significant difference.
Significance: ICFPD produced microstrains on bone surface near pontic higher than microstrain values of those near pontic in implant supported conventional FPD, but were still within normal physiologic value.